A new chapter opens Friday for Rupert Murdoch and his News Corp with the split of the media-entertainment conglomerate as the 82-year-old coincidentally goes through a marriage breakup.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Banks reported a continued rise in bad debt in the first five months of this year with potentially irrecoverable debt soaring by 36.5% compared to the end of 2012.

 Congratulatory messages sent to Australia, Quatar; Ties with RoK sea police bolstered; Seminar on Ho Chi Minh’s thoughts; Government offices to share with Laos

VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang and Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono officially announced the upgrade of Viet Nam-Indonesia relations to a strategic partnership during their talks in Jakarta yesterday, June 27.

Young collector Le Cong Anh Duc in HCM City died before realizing his dream of establishing a private museum. His family presented a collection of nearly 500 ancient lamps to Dien Ban District Museum, Quang Nam province.

 VietNamNet Bridge – People in Kan Ho Commune, Lai Chau Province, have denounced a local firm for continuing their illegal gold mining activities despite causing a recent fatal accident.

VietNamNet Bridge – The Prime Minister has issued a directive urging ministries, sectors, local authorities and State-owned corporations to build socio-economic development plans and State budget estimates for 2014

 VietNamNet Bridge – Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai has asked for dams involved in hydro-electricity projects across the country to undergo thorough safety inspections.

VietNamNet Bridge – The ancient town of Hoi An in the central province of Quang Nam had balanced the needs of the community and world recognised heritages to boost tourism in a sustainable manner,

VietNamNet Bridge – More than 30 brick kilns in Ha Noi's Chuong My District keep operating, polluting the environment and impacting human health and production, even though the city's people's committee asked them to stop operations

VietNamNet Bridge – The macro economy has started showing signs of recovery with growth seen in most industries in the year’s first half, but such achievements are still fragile,

 VietNamNet Bridge – About 60 valuable and important contemporary paintings by Vietnamese artists are being displayed for the first time in Bangkok.

VietNamNet Bridge – The number of adults suffering from high blood pressure is increasing rapidly because people are eating too much salt, said Dr Phan Bich Nga from the National Institute of Nutrition.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The Ministry of Justice has submitted a draft amended Law on Marriage and Family to the government in which it proposes removing regulations to ban same-sex marriages.  

 In landmark rulings for gay rights, the US Supreme Court struck down a law denying federal benefits to homosexual couples and cleared the way for same-sex marriage in California.

VietNamNet Bridge – Six of the best rock bands including 18+, Dong Do, Bui Gio, Hemelians, Hac San, and Parasite will take part in the final round of Tiger Translate-Battle of the Bands 2013 at Thong Nhat Park in Hanoi on June 29.

 US$748 million for national power transmission project; Tuna firms use dolphin-friendly nets to continue global exports; SBV sells more gold at auction; Tra fish farmers suffer losses on price fall

VietNamNet Bridge – Newly registered and additional foreign direct investment (FDI) capital in Viet Nam totalled US$10.5 billion in the first half this year, or a 16 per cent increase over the same period last year.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The government of HCM City has decided to take back land and licences it had given to more than 100 development projects.

 US officials announced the largest-ever bust of a global synthetic drugs ring Wednesday, seizing thousands of pounds of illicit drugs and arresting 225 people in five countries.